Last night Stephen Colbert sat down with Sean Hannity, who “joined [him] live from stuff [he] could edit together,” and with some crafty splicing, proceeded to turn Hannity into an aspiring prostitute.

Colbert was determined to get Hannity’s thoughts on the reports that James O’Keefe’s ACORN videos had been “heavily edited” to be deceptive. Hannity had been silent on the issue, despite being a vocal supporter of O’Keefe.

Using the same misleading tactics O’Keefe employed, Colbert quickly got what he needed out of Hannity and moved along, donning a pimp’s hat and coat. The “interview” was revealing, as Hannity was dying to get out on the streets and turn some tricks. The only thing holding him back: a lack of hooker boots and condoms.

More evidence that Supposedly Liberal Dudes view women as second class citizens. The way that Colbert frames prostitution as the most degrading thing possible is creepy and sad. And anyone who thinks legalization would make any difference in the level of contempt thrown at people who sell sex should investigate similar cultural references to women in pornography.

This reminds me, a recent issue of Time magazine had an article about Jenny McCarthy and the autism debate. Although I don’t agree with McCarthy that vaccines cause autism, the article referred to McCarthy’s former status as a Playboy model at least 3 times- as though that automatically de-legitimized her position.